1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to interoperability between computer systems, and, more particularly, to providing interoperability between computer systems and organizations by using a middleware master control file. Moreover, the present invention relates generally to medical Pocket Devices and, in particular, to methods which support a wide variety of measurement, collection, communication, and analysis functions.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer-based medical information systems are known in the art. These computer-based medical information systems include medical information tools categorized as: (1) data collection devices, or (2) hospital information systems. The hospital information systems include input, storage, and retrieval of patient records and Picture Archive and Communication Systems (or PACS).
An example of application software corresponding to medical information software 10 is shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the medical information software 10 creates and maintains a folder with patient demographics and image files, in the format of a medical record 12. The medical record 12 is created using input data from a variety of sources, including a hospital information system 16, a photographer 18, a database 20, PACS image acquisition 22 through a DICOM/Push, and an MPG file 24. Images from the PACS image acquisition are displayed on a physician workstation 26, through a DICOM/Pull using TCP/IP.
FIG. 2 shows a local area network (LAN) configuration 30 of the medical information system 10 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, data including the patient database files 32 and the volume—images objects that have been filed and captured 34 are stored on server 36. This data is transmitted to the server 36 over a local area network 38 after acquisition from a variety of instruments 40, including dermascopes, endoscopes, otoscopes, ophthalmoscopes, stethoscopes, microscopes, echocardiograms, ultrasound, and MRI/CT. Moreover, this data may include patient demographic information entered using computer 42. This data, once stored on the server 36, can be displayed on a physician workstation 22 or printed on a printer 44.
A typical environment for the local area network configuration 30 would include the computer 42 executing the WINDOWS 98 operating system, the local area network 38 including TCP/IP, share name, LMHOSTS, and HOSTS, and a startup using the MEDVIZER Phone and VITEL NET video conferencing.
That is, VITEL NET application software 10 being executed by a local area network configuration 30, through telephone lines (POTS), through ISDN lines, through T-1 lines, and over satellite is known in the art.
Although experts in the two fields of data collection devices and hospital information systems have been working to form standards within their respective fields, deficiencies remain. Also, personnel in the medical information systems industry have been much less successful in developing a common set of commands and protocols to allow concurrent operation within the various categories of medical information tools.
Despite a tidal wave of new technologies, a consistent trend towards proprietary communications languages, protocols, and stand-alone medical systems sustains an unacceptable requirement for redundant systems, training, and excessive capital equipment costs. This cost is born disproportionately by the customer where operational requirements span a great diversity of needs, including special operations in remote medical care.
Moreover, confusion arises in attempting to make computer systems with disparate proprietary communications languages, protocols, and stand-alone medical systems communicate with each other. The current confusion in medical communications supports the manufacturers of large and expensive systems, but interferes with efficient and cost-effective healthcare delivery.
There is a need for a common set of medical information communications protocols, or common standards. The use of a common set of medical information communications protocols would improve healthcare delivery within the private sector while markedly reducing the costs associated with healthcare delivery. Moreover, the development of common standards could be one of the most important breakthroughs in health care in the coming years.
One way of providing a common set of medical information communications protocols, or common standards, is by an architecture which includes the use of a master control file. A master control file (or MCF) is middleware software storing information which, when read by a computer program referred to as an engine, provides an interface between an application program and the WINDOWS operating system. The master control file (or MCF) provides an open, interoperable, platform and language independent distributed (MCF) architecture. This approach has been enormously successful and has been adopted by numerous large firms around the world as the basic architecture for their complex Patient Record Information systems. This infrastructure provides a great deal of power, scalability, and interoperability.
An example of an architecture 110 using a master control file is shown in FIG. 3. As shown in the architecture 110 of FIG. 3, an application program 112 (such as a VITEL NET Application) interfaces to a master control file (MCF) 114, as well as to an MNU 116, and a database 118. The MCF 114, the MNU 116, and the database 118 are then read by an engine 120 (such as a VITEL NET engine), which interfaces to the WINDOWS operating system 128 through the WN32 API 122, OCX files 124, and DLL files 126. The operating system 128 includes functions such as a virtual memory manager 130, a file system manager 132, and a configuration manager 134, as well as the kernel 136. The operating system 128 then interfaces to device drivers 138, which interface to hardware 140.
The functionality and interfacing provided in the engine 120 corresponds to the operating system 128 to which the engine 120 is interfacing. The use of a VITEL NET engine 120 corresponding to the WINDOWS operating system 128 and the WINDOWS NT operating system 128 is known in the art. A typical programming language in which the engine 120 is written is VISUAL BASIC.
With the use of engine 120, the master control file 114 and the application programs 112 are not required to change when ported between the WINDOWS operating system 128 and the WINDOWS NT operating system 128.
MEDVIZER Technology Overview
An overview of a medical information system 10 is now presented.
VITEL NET's core technology revolves around FDA-cleared development software called the Dvision Toolbox (or master control file (MCF)), and the MEDVIZER (Medicine Visualizer) Engine. The Dvision Toolbox utilizes a set of tools and programs that allow VITEL NET to create, modify, and manage multi-media databases and applications in a programmer-less environment. The MEDVIZER Engine is a set of programs that provides the specific functionalities for the applications created with the Dvision Toolbox. The VITEL NET Division Toolbox is known in the art and has proven to be a foundational technology on which to build and launch customizable products and enterprise-wide solutions. The Dvision Toolbox is the workbench on which solutions are designed and constructed for customers in a programmer-less environment.
Specific clinical products in areas such as General Telemedicine, Teleradiology, Teleultrasound, Telecardiology, Post Acute Care and Home Care, offered as turnkey solutions are known in the art, and each clinical is customized as a value-added service to address the health care requirements and needed specifications of users.
Open-architecture, and scalable telemedicine products and services are known in the art, as are enterprise-wide solutions for users, including ensuring security of data, infrastructure scalability, integration with legacy systems and the ability to capture and present information without dependence upon time or place.
Moreover, the complexities of today's health care marketplace are burgeoning. An increasingly mobile society, coupled with changes in care delivery protocols, legal regulations (such as HIPPA), and the all too fluid business landscape, present significant challenges to most health care providers and the vendors who serve them.
Also known in the are the following functions and features of the VITEL NET Dvision Toolbox and MEDVIZER Engine, which allow rapid tailoring of products to meet specific users' precise requirements. VITEL NET's core technology enables workflow that allows each patient record to be tracked from start to finish. Customized operator interfaces that are targeted specifically for the individual phases in the workflow are created in a programmer-less environment and yield a complete solution.
Moreover, VITEL NET's products are integrated with existing legacy hospital, radiology or clinical information systems, enabling users to leverage existing investments and the delivery of effective image distribution and management solutions.
In addition, the medical information system 10 enables consultations with remote facilities using store-and-forward and/or real-time modes, all of which are compatible with any conventional telecommunication system, including POTS, ISDN, T-1, Satellite, and wireless Internet/LAN.
Further, the medical information system 10 offers key enterprise technologies like the versatile MedVizer Postmaster. The MedVizer Postmaster Server receives patient data, updates the central database, routes the information to the intended clinician, and can send alerts indicating that clinical data are waiting for review.
Moreover, the medical information system 10 provides information security. VITEL NET's Security Services module meets or exceeds today's demanding the HIPPA security and information tracking requirements.
Also, the medical information system 10 provides the technical and clinical expertise to assure that the solution delivered is designed to meet specific user requirements and operates reliably with the user's existing systems.
Also known in the art are VITEL NET's Enterprise Solution Components, including:                MedVizer Postmaster        MedVizer Desktop Manager        MedVizer PACS Gateway/DICOM Manager        MedVizer-Enabled Web-Browser        Telephony Manager        Collaboration Manager (Camera/Device Control & Annotation)        Chat Manager        Data Manager Services        Workflow Services        Folder Management        Report Generator        Image Manipulation Services        Enterprise Security Manager        Volume Management Services        Bar Code Services        Device Capture Manager        Videoconferencing        Interface Manager (HL7, DICOM 3.0)        Store and Forward Exchange Services        Multi-form Management Services        C.O.L.D. (computer output to laser disk)        
What is needed is a master control file and an engine which enable an application program to be ported to a hand-held device or used over the Internet, without requiring change to the application program, and which enable interoperability of the application program between disparate operating systems.
Moreover, there exists a need for comprehensive physiological monitoring in portable and remote settings. Current systems are generally large, costly, and inflexible. Pocket Devices can digitized, encapsulated, and routed through a complex digital network under programmed control there by offering a truly universal data exchange functions.
At the same time, in the computer industry there has been a movement toward system interoperability through open systems protocols. This movement is being driven by TCP/IP, followed by Windows CE and now applications level protocols SMTP and MAPI. These protocols standards have allowed interoperability between computers using different operating systems, hardware platforms, and applications suites. Within the Government and industry these data transfer protocols, mostly oriented towards transmission and/or sharing of images and documents have substantially improved the usefulness of office and home Computers' with respect to medical PD, however, such support for multiple platforms or distributed, object-oriented collection and analysis architectures for multiple data types do not yet exist.